Thomas Tuchel has said he is not afraid to rotate for England’s game against Panama in New York, even though they run the risk of not topping their World Cup group if a weakened team fail to win.
The German was undecided whether he would have made 11 changes even if England had already secured top spot in Group L, but Tuesday’s 0-0 stalemate with Ghana means that if Tuchel’s team drop points, they could be overhauled by the winner of Croatia’s match against Carlos Queiroz’s side.
If England win the pool, they go to Atlanta to face a third-placed finisher, whereas if they come second, they head to Toronto to face Portugal or Colombia.
Tuchel is considering “moderate” changes on Saturday and hopes Bukayo Saka will be fit to start for the first time in the tournament, after the winger came off the bench in England’s opening two matches.
He explained: “I was not even sure if to do the full rotation [if England had beaten Ghana]. Maybe we would have. But I am not shy to do some rotation now.
“Some players should be on the pitch but maybe it will be more moderate. It’s not always fair if you just rotate your players in and say, ‘Okay, let’s perform.’ Let’s see.
“I like, for example, the centre backs today. They were good together. I like Elliot Anderson, he had a step forward and a good performance, maybe a bit better than against Croatia.”
Tuchel said England need Saka “desperately” but warned that the Arsenal winger cannot solve all of their problems.
Noni Madueke has begun both matches on the right flank so far, but Tuchel feels Saka’s recovery from an Achilles issue is going well enough for him to return to the starting XI.
He added: “He seems to be more and more ready, and will hopefully push, and then we will see what is coming. He’s getting there, and there’s more and more training sessions, so he needs to have more sessions now. Two sessions to be ready for Panama.
“We need it from everyone. It’s not like Bukayo comes back and everything is solved, and I don’t want to put this on his back. He is a top player. That’s why he is with us. We need him desperately, like every other player, in top shape and pushing.”
Tuchel admitted it was not easy to watch England as they laboured to a draw against Ghana in a match where neither side had a shot on target in the first half.
But he said: “There is a long way to go and no one won a World Cup with four goals per match and going for it. We always want to go for it and our responsibility is to bring everything to the table.
“I know it’s not an easy watch, I know. Maybe I watch it differently from the sideline as a coach. I know what we wanted and what we had to take care of. I know it’s not crazy exciting but it needs two to tango.”
Ezri Konsa could have conceded a penalty for a challenge on Prince Adu but Tuchel, who brought in Marc Guehi to partner the Aston Villa man, praised both.
“I liked both central defenders,” he said. “It was a difficult match. We allowed two counter-attacks, and only two counter-attacks.”
